How to choose a history app: the Timeline Test
Short answer
To choose a history app, ask five questions of its App Store or Google Play listing: 1. Does it teach history in order? 2. Is there a quiz right after every lesson? 3. Does it show sources or say who checks the facts? 4. Are the lessons written by people, not generated by AI? 5. Is the price clear? We call this the Timeline Test. Of the 12 apps we checked on October 20, 2026, only Aurelius (our app) passes all five; Khan Academy passes four, and Histopia, Learn History: Timeline Quiz, Clio and World History Encyclopedia pass three. The first two questions matter most, because order and recall decide whether you remember anything a month later. The table below gives every app's answers, and you can run the same test on any app in about two minutes.
By Angelo Sorbello. Before building Aurelius we installed most of the history apps on this site and kept forgetting what we had "learned" within a week. The apps that worked had two things in common: they went in order, and they made us answer questions straight away. The Timeline Test turns that into five questions anyone can check on a store listing, without paying or signing up.
The five questions
The Timeline Test
- Does it teach history in order? A path or course in time order, not a feed of random facts.
- Is there a quiz right after every lesson? Recall straight after reading is what makes facts stick.
- Does it show sources or say who checks the facts? Image credits, sources, fact-checking or expert review on the listing.
- Are the lessons written by people, not generated by AI? AI-generated lessons can contain mistakes the app warns you about.
- Is the price clear? Free, or one price per plan length on the listing.
| App | Score | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurelius Our app | 5/5 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Khan Academy | 4/5 | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Histopia | 3/5 | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Learn History: Timeline Quiz | 3/5 | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Clio | 3/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| World History Encyclopedia | 3/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Paladin | 2/5 | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| HistoryDays | 2/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Histia | 2/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Nibble | 2/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Historo | 1/5 | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| History Master | 1/5 | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
Why each question matters
1. Does it teach history in order?
History is a chain of causes. The Roman Republic falls after the Gracchi, Marius and Caesar; the French Revolution follows the American one and an empty royal treasury. If an app shows you Napoleon on Monday and the pharaohs on Tuesday, nothing connects, and isolated facts are the first thing memory drops. Look on the listing for words like "path", "course", "campaign" or "chronological". Apps built around famous people or "this day in history" are fun, but they rarely say they follow an order. See the order to learn world history.
2. Is there a quiz right after every lesson?
This is the best-documented question of the five. In a classic experiment, students who took a recall test after reading remembered much more a week later than students who reread the same text, even though rereading made them feel more confident (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006). A 2013 review of ten study techniques rated practice testing as one of only two with "high utility" (Association for Psychological Science). A quiz "somewhere in the app" is good; a quiz after every lesson is better.
3. Does it show sources or say who checks the facts?
History apps simplify, and simplifying is where mistakes creep in. A listing that credits its images, names its sources, or says lessons are fact-checked or reviewed by experts gives you something to hold it to. Most listings say nothing at all.
4. Are the lessons written by people?
Some apps now generate lessons with AI. That is not automatically bad, but the apps that do it usually warn that "AI can make mistakes", which is the opposite of what you want from something you will memorise. If you use one, double-check anything important.
5. Is the price clear?
Several history apps list five or six different yearly prices for the same plan, so what you pay depends on the offer you are shown. A clear app is either free or shows one price per plan length. Whatever you choose, you can cancel a subscription from Apple's subscription settings or Google Play's; deleting the app does not cancel it.
How to run the test on any app
- Open the listing on the App Store or Google Play and expand the description.
- Search the text for path, course, chronological, quiz, sources, credited, fact-checked, AI.
- Open the in-app purchases list and count the prices per plan length.
- Score one point per yes. Four or five: worth a trial. Two or less: fine for fun, weak for learning.
What the results show
Only Aurelius, the app we make, passes all five: lessons in chronological order, a quiz after every lesson, credited images and fact-checked lessons written by people, and two prices (monthly and yearly). That is not a coincidence: we built it around these questions, which is also why you should check the answers yourself. Khan Academy passes four (it misses only the quiz after every lesson), and free apps like Histopia, Learn History: Timeline Quiz and World History Encyclopedia pass three. Paladin, the most-rated history-only app, passes two: a quiz after every lesson and no AI-written content. Historo, second in our overall ranking, passes only one, because its lessons are generated by AI and its listing shows several prices per plan.
The Timeline Test is deliberately simple. Our full ranking uses seven weighted criteria, including platforms and store ratings, where Aurelius scores lowest because it is new: see how we rate history apps and the full ranking.
Frequently asked questions
What should I look for in a history app?
History in chronological order, a quiz right after each lesson, visible sources or fact-checking, lessons written by people, and a clear price. Those five questions are the Timeline Test.
Which history app passes the Timeline Test?
Of 12 apps checked on October 20, 2026, only Aurelius (our app) passes all five questions. Khan Academy passes four; Histopia, Learn History: Timeline Quiz, Clio and World History Encyclopedia pass three; Paladin passes two.
Why does a quiz after each lesson matter so much?
Because recalling information is what strengthens memory. Students who were tested after reading remembered more a week later than those who reread (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006).
Are free history apps worth it?
Yes, if they pass the questions that matter to you. Khan Academy and World History Encyclopedia are free and expert-made; Histopia's lessons are free. See the best free history apps.
Can I use the Timeline Test for other learning apps?
Yes. Order, recall, sources, human-written content and a clear price matter in any subject.
The bottom line
Pick an app that passes at least the first two questions: order and recall. If you want one that passes all five, try Aurelius free for 3 days ($9.99 a month after); if you need free, start with Khan Academy or Histopia.
Sources
- Roediger, H. L., & Karpicke, J. D. (2006). "Test-enhanced learning: Taking memory tests improves long-term retention." Psychological Science, 17(3), 249–255. PubMed
- Dunlosky, J., et al. (2013). "Improving students' learning with effective learning techniques." Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14(1). Summary: Association for Psychological Science
- App Store and Google Play listings of the 12 apps, read October 20, 2026.